News summary
- Cubans join Russian army to ensure financial stability; Russian money brings relief.
- The Cuban village of La Federal is about to migrate to Russia.
- Cuban recruits respond to offers on social media; Bonuses and salaries attract them.
- Economic crisis in Cuba leads to large migration; The Russian government did not comment on the case.
Putin is exploiting the war in Ukraine to end freedom of expression in Russia. CUBARUSSIA/ Portal/Alexandre Meneghini
Cuban seamstress Yamidely Cervantes bought a new sewing machine and a sewing machine for the first time in years Refrigerator It is a mobileall thanks to the money sent by Russia.
Cervantes told Portal that her husband, Enrique Gonzalez, 49, a penniless bricklayer, left their home in the village of La Federal on July 19 to fight for the Russian army in Ukraine and days later withdrew part of his enlistment bonus of around 200,000 transferred rubles (R$10,200), which he received in Cuban pesos.
It’s like winning the lottery for those most in need on the Caribbean island. According to Cuba’s National Office of Statistics and Information, it is more than a hundred times the state’s average monthly salary of 4,209 pesos (R$85).
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Few places are feeling the crisis more acutely than La Federal, a community of about 800 residents on the outskirts of Havana, where one in four residents is unemployed, according to 2022 government data.
At least three men have set off for Russia since June on a 100meterlong dirt road where Cervantes lives. Another sold his house early but didn’t travel, he said.
“I think we’re staying put like this, you can count those who have stayed on one hand,” said the 42yearold as she looked out onto the street from a small terrace.
“Need is what forces this,” she said.
Portal followed the stories of these four men as well as more than a dozen Cubans recruited in neighborhoods in and around Havana to come to Russia, from construction workers and shopkeepers to refinery and telephone company workers.
In total, 11 of the men flew to Russia, while seven others declined at the last minute.
Interviews with many of the men as well as other friends and family, as well as a mountain of WhatsApp messages, travel documents, photos and phone numbers, corroborated their accounts as they painted the most detailed picture yet of how Cubans are doing in support of Russian forces.
The Kremlin and the Russian Defense Ministry did not respond to questions about the recruitment of Cubans into the armed forces. The Cuban government also did not respond to questions asked for this report.
News of Cubans in the Russian military made headlines this month when the government of Cuba, a longtime Russian ally, arrested 17 people involved in a human trafficking ring that wanted to take residents to fight in Moscow.
Cuba reiterated that it is “not part of the war in Ukraine.”
The recruits identified by Portal volunteered to go to Russia to work for the army after receiving offers on social media from a recruiter who identified herself as “Dayana.”
In La Federal, for example, the nine recruits identified by Portal reported to fight in the war. In Alamar, a community east of Havana, most of the five men reported for noncombat tasks such as construction, packing supplies and logistics.
Cervantes’ husband Gonzalez, speaking via video call from a Russian military base outside the city of Tula, south of Moscow, said he was one of 119 Cubans training there. When he arrived in Russia, he said he signed a contract of cooperation with the military, translated into Spanish.
“Everyone who came here knew why they came. That he went to war,” he said, smiling, dressed in military uniform as he showed images of the camp to Portal via digital media.
Gonzalez added that the 119 Cubans there would be trained to fight in the war, although it was not yet clear where they would be sent.
“I have several friends who are there for Ukraine, yes, they are where the bombs are falling, but not in confrontation with the Ukrainians,” he added.
Portal was unable to contact the other men who joined the army, but confirmed via WhatsApp and photos that they had flown to Russia and two are now in Crimea.
Contacted for comment on the recruitment of Cubans into the Russian army, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko said: “I can confirm that the Ukrainian embassy in Havana is in contact with the Cuban authorities on this matter. “
The Ukrainian Defense Ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
A US State Department spokesman said Washington was closely monitoring the situation.
“We are deeply concerned about reports that young Cubans have been deceived and recruited to fight for Russia,” the spokesman said.
DAYANA
The Cuban recruiting activities identified by Portal began weeks after a decree issued in May by President Vladimir Putin that allowed foreigners to be drafted into the army, enlisted for a year in order to obtain Russian citizenship in an expedited process, along with their spouses and children and parents.
In La Federal, news of military employment began to spread in June, according to neighbors interviewed. Application offers were shared on Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp and the topic became the talk of the town, with “Dayana” being named as the contact person.
Cristian Hernandez, 24, smiled when asked how many people had left the village of La Federal. “Almost all of our friends were there,” he said.
Yoan Viondi, 23, who lives just a few minutes’ bike ride from the main road, said he knew about 100 people in Villa Maria, a town that includes La Federal, who had been recruited into the Russia conflict since June.
He added that a friend sent him the WhatsApp contact of “Dayana,” a Cuban woman who he said bought plane tickets for future recruits. “Dayana” was also mentioned as a key contact by most of the recruits and family members Portal spoke to.
Viondi wasted no time.
“Hello, good afternoon,” Viondi told Dayana on July 21 in a message seen by Portal. “Please, I need information.”
“Dayana,” who appears on her chat icon as a darkhaired woman wearing a camouflage hat, responded almost immediately with the terms of the contract, according to the timestamps. The first line of the message reads: “It is a contract with the Russian army that allows you to obtain citizenship.”
The contract was for a year and offered a signing bonus of 195,000 rubles, followed by a monthly salary of 200,000 rubles and 15 days of vacation after the first six months of employment.
These conditions match those provided to Portal by other recruits and their families.
“If you agree, just send (a copy of) your passport,” the Dayana message said.
Within two minutes, Viondi sent a digital copy of his passport. An hour later, “Dayana” responded in an audio message heard by Portal: “Perfect, tomorrow I can tell you what day you will travel,” she said.
Portal could not reach Dayana to comment on the number used by Viondi and others or to confirm her number and full name.
Viondi added to Portal that neither “Dayana” nor anyone else asked him to keep their interactions secret.
He said he had kept in touch with at least four friends who had signed army contracts in Russia and, as far as possible, he knew “that they were doing well.” The majority, he said, are now in Ukraine.
Cuba is experiencing its worst economic crisis in decades, with long queues for even basic products such as food, fuel and medicine, leading to an exodus of Cubans who have traveled to the United States, Latin America and Europe since last year.
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